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Falcao vs. Hulk: Who is the better player?

Brazilian international striker Hulk has joined Russian club Zenit St Petersburg for a fee of up to £47.5million from Porto, according to Sky Sports.

The Brazilian star had been linked with a move to the Premier League with Chelsea for a long time, but the Blues decided not to pursue their interest in the attacker.

Comparison

That is a massive fee for any club to pay for a player. I’m not so sure that Hulk has the talent to justify that big a fee. Don’t get me wrong I do rate Hulk, but I don’t think he is worth nearly £50million.

If you compare him to Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao then he doesn’t even compare for all round play and what he gives the team. The Colombian striker has a minimum fee release clause of £43.5million in his contract at Atletico.

After Falcao destroyed Chelsea in the European Super Cup with it a hat-trick it was revealed that he would love a move to English top flight and that he ‘loved’ Chelsea. It also seems that Chelsea hold a big interest in the talented striker.

Goals

Both players primary job in the game is scoring goals. Last season Hulk got on the score sheet 16 times for Porto in the SuperLiga. Last season in his debut season at Atletico Madrid Falcao scored 36 goals in all competitions, including a record 17 goals in the Europa League, as his club lifted the trophy.

Levels

Hulk and Falcao both made their names at Porto, before moving on. Falcao stepped up a level, but Hulk seems to have taken a side step in his career. A move to the Russian top flight isn’t exactly a big step up.

Hulk will get Champions League football at Zenit, but he got that at his Portuguese club anyway. Falcao on the other hand has made the step up into La Liga look effortless. Hulk wanted to make the step up in to a bigger league, but no clubs from England or Spain were prepared to pay the giant asking price.

Versatile

Hulk is definitely more versatile than his Colombian pier. He can play on either wing or as a central striker, whereas Falcao is only effective as a central striker. Hulk’s versatility will prove a great asset to his new club.

Gems

I can’t help thinking that Porto is laughing all the way to the bank with the Hulk deal. The Portuguese giants have this knack of unearthing gems, polishing them and making a large profit from selling them.

They could have another unearthed another one in Falcao’s compatriot Jackson Martinez. The 25 year-old striker has made an impressive start to his career in Portugal and could be the next player to make the club a fortune in the transfer market.

Value

I think most English and Spanish baulked at Hulk’s transfer fee because it was completely unrealistic, yet the Russian club had enough money to prise Hulk away from Porto. I don’t think that Hulk will ever prove value for money for Zenit.

I think Hulk has been slightly overhyped and although he is a talented player, he is not worth the reported transfer fee of £47.5million.

Competition

For me there is no competition to who is the best out of the two ex-Porto stars. Sorry Hulk I don’t want to get you angry, because I know I wouldn’t like you when you’re angry, but in my humble opinion Falcao is a far better all-round player.

Falcao has all the attributes of a world-class striker. As he proved against Chelsea in the European Super Cup he can score all sorts of different goals. He is useful with both feet and a fantastic header of the ball.

I know if I had to choose between the pair I would choose Falcao. He has already proved he can play at a high standard of football in La Liga and I’m sure he wouldn’t look out of place at Chelsea.

6 Comments:

That´s the way it goes… Money and the chance to play in competitive leagues. That isn’t the case here in Portugal, and Porto needs to make some market money every year. And you´re right when you mentioned the unpolished “gems”, it´s one of Porto´s strategies. About the subject… Falcão is the best of the two. As the late Sir Bobby Robson (one of the best managers my team had) said, he has the “killer instinct”. But Hulk is also very good and best professional. One last thing… Pay attention to another “gem” James Rodriguez. If this kid find´s himself in the hands of MU´s Sir Alex Ferguson…

Hi Ashkan, I made the comparison between Hulk and Falcao because Hulk had just made a big money move to Zenit. Falcao has also been linked with a move. Comparisons between the other players you mentioned would be very interesting though.